This proposal is for a conference grant for the Sixteenth Microbial Genomics Conference (formerly the E. coli and Small Genomes Conference, and the Microbial Genomes Conference) to be held September 14-18, 2008, at the UCLA conference center at Lake Arrowhead, California. The genomics landscape has changed now that numerous genomes are available and that microarrays and bioinformatics methods are advancing rapidly, and that whole microbial communities are open to investigation at the sequence level. It is timely to foster multi-disciplinary approaches to define and solve problems. Considerable integration of different aspects of microbiology will undoubtedly take place, including new perspectives on evolution and the requirements for life. To achieve these goals, particularly of integration and synergy, scientists from diverse disciplines must interact. Thus, this conference will include active genome researchers, such as sequencing experts and informatics specialists working in database design, sequence analysis, or simulation; geneticists developing new methods to take advantage of genomic information, e.g. for functional analysis; and cell biologists and biochemists who have specialized in areas now ripe for genomics such as metabolism, chromosome structure, or gene regulation. One focus of this conference will be on microbial communities and biodiversity, including pathogens and biothreat agents. This has a direct bearing on human health. This meeting has become established as a major annual microbial genomics conference during the last sixteen years and has assured status and quality. This conference deals with the molecular genetics of microorganisms, including pathogens and biothreats. Methods facilitating the detection and fingerprinting of these microorganisms, as well as understanding how their genomes relate to their functions, all topics at the conference, are directly related to human health. [unreadable] [unreadable] [unreadable]